Three California residents have filed a Benicar lawsuit accusing Benicar manufacturers, Daiichi Sankyo and Forest Pharmaceuticals, of concealing dangerous Benicar side effects that caused serious health issues for the plaintiffs.

Plaintiffs Louis V. from Oakland, Calif. and Michael and Frances Mary E. from Bakersfield, Calif. jointly filed the lawsuit over the alleged side effects of Benicar. The plaintiffs used Benicar and claim they suffered from several Benicar injuries such as “sprue-like enteropathy, villous atrophy, lymphocytic colitis, microscopic colitis” and several other intestinal diseases that required hospitalization.

As a result of taking Benicar, the plaintiffs allege they experienced chronic diarrhea which resulted in rapid weight loss, nausea, vomiting, malnutrition, dehydration, and acute renal failure. These Benicar side effects have allegedly caused the plaintiffs to have mounting medical bills and to experience pain and suffering that is expected to continue for a long period of time.

Dangers of Benicar Side Effects

Benicar was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2002 to treat hypertension. By 2012, nearly 2 million patients had been prescribed Benicar and subsequently have been put at greater risk of developing Benicar side effects.

The FDA issued a warning in 2013 that stated Benicar side effects could include sprue-like enteropathy. However, this FDA warning was allegedly not issued in time to prevent the named plaintiffs from developing Benicar sprue-like enteropathy side effects.

According to the Benicar lawsuit, sprue-like enteropathy symptoms include severe, chronic diarrhea with substantial weight loss” and “may develop months to years after starting [Benicar] and sometimes require hospitalization.”

Because Benicar side effects are similar to celiac disease symptoms, many Benicar users have received an incorrect celiac disease diagnosis. This misdiagnosis may have resulted in unnecessary lifestyle changes when the real problem was the villous atrophy, a Benicar side effect that mimics symptoms of celiac disease.

Benicar Lawsuits

Benicar clinical trials only lasted up to three months, but according to the Benicar lawsuit, “physicians commonly prescribe [Benicar] as treatment for hypertension for prolonged periods of six months to a year or more.” The Benicar lawsuit alleges that had the defendants extended clinical trials, the adverse Benicar side effects would have been revealed.

The Benicar lawsuit also alleges that the defendants falsely claimed that Benicar was “superior, more effective and safer” than other hypertension medications. Daiichi Sankyo spent millions in Benicar marketing and promotional spending over the span of several years to convey the benefits of their drug while allegedly failing to mention potential side effects such as Benicar diarrhea. Numerous Benicar lawsuits have been filed against the defendants for creating a dangerous product and failing to warn about potential Benicar side effects.

The Benicar Lawsuit is Case No. 3:15-cv-159, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.